'Crucial' time for global warming

Sunday 14 January 2007 00:02 BST

This summer's meeting of G8 leaders presents a "tremendous opportunity" to put in place a framework for fighting global warming after the Kyoto Protocol runs out in 2012, Prime Minister Tony Blair has said.

Mr Blair said there was now widespread agreement around the world about the threat posed by climate change, as well as an enormous demand from the people of many nations for their political leaders to do something about it.

But he warned that agreement on a post-Kyoto process was far from certain at the G8 gathering at Heiligendamm in Germany in June, and considerable behind-the-scenes work was needed in advance of the meeting to resolve technical details of any deal.

Speaking at a press conference in Berlin following talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany - this year's president of the G8 - Mr Blair said that the coming months were an "absolutely crucial" period not only for climate change but also for other global priorities such as the Middle East peace process and the search for a world trade deal.

He promised to do "as much as I can" to secure success in these negotiations in the few months left to him before he steps down as Prime Minister, which he has said he would do by the start of September.

Ms Merkel said a conference in May will thrash out the details of a climate change deal to be put before the leaders of the G8 countries - the US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, Japan and Russia - as well as China, India, Mexico, Brazil and South Africa, who will also be represented at Heiligendamm.

Any deal would have to include agreement on three key issues, she said. These are a CO2 emission reduction goal designed to limit rises in global temperatures to no more than 2C, and an international system of carbon pricing to provide incentives for the development and adoption of technology and procedures which limit the emission of greenhouse gases;

It would also have to include a system of technology transfer to ensure that emerging economies like China and India, as well as the developing world, have access to cleaner technologies.

Ms Merkel said it was hoped Europe would be able to offer to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 30%, subject to international agreement, as well as increasing the share of its energy produced from renewable sources by 20% by 2020.

These goals are set to be discussed by EU leaders at a European Council summit in Berlin in March, chaired by Germany.